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Alicia
Gantt
Booker T. Washington’s Atlanta Compromise Speech
Script
After
his Atlanta Compromise Speech in September of 1895, Booker T.
Washington, a former slave, an educator, and founder of the Tuskegee
Institute in the state of Alabama, became one of the most prominent
African Americans of his time. He was considered the leading spokesman
for his people. (Berkin).
His
address to the Cotton States and International Exposition took
place in Atlanta, Georgia, where thirty years earlier, during
the Civil War, union General William T. Sherman and his troops
completely destroyed the city, burning it to the ground. (Martin).
Prior
to his invitation to address the exposition, Washington praised
the positive efforts of the south for all the good things they
had accomplished, not berating them for all of their wrong-doing
and Jim Crow laws of oppression. He never mentioned the atrocities
they afflicted upon African Americans. (Washington).
It
was for this reason the committee chose him to address the exposition
in Atlanta. The committee consisted of twenty-five of the most
prominent and influential white men in the State of Georgia (Washington).
Their
intentions were to appear before Congress in a successful effort
to secure government aid for the exposition. (Washington).
In
Atlanta’s Piedmont Park before an integrated crowd of thousands
of curious, prominent, and influential spectators, Booker T. Washington
addressed the audience with compassion and conviction (“Prelude”).
He
expressed his ideas for a New South saying, “In all things
social we can be as separate as the fingers, yet one as the hand
in all things essential to mutual progress. (“Booker”)”
He
addressed his own race saying…
"To
those of my race, who depend on bettering their condition in a
foreign land, or who underestimate the importance of preserving
friendly relations with the southern white man who is their next
door neighbor, I would say: Cast down your bucket where you are…
(“Booker”)”
He
addressed the white race saying…
“If
anywhere there are efforts tending to curtail the fullest growth
of the Negro, let these efforts be turned into stimulating, encouraging
and making him the most useful and intelligent citizen. Effort
or means so invested will pay a thousand percent interest. These
efforts will be twice blessed – blessing him that gives,
and him that takes… “Booker”)”
He
pleaded with his audience, “Cast down your bucket where
you are,” as a symbolism for peace and equality for all
races (“Booker”).
After
his address, Washington realized the magnitude of the impact he
made on his audience (“Equal”).
The
public’s response was phenomenal. People of both races praised
him for his efforts. Newspapers emerged with articles about his
address to the Cotton States and International Exposition (“Equal”).
The
Atlanta Compromise opened the door of opportunity for Washington,
including political advisement (“Equal”).
Later,
he encountered bitter opposition and criticism from militant leaders,
like W.E.B. DuBois, and from organizations, such as the N.A.A.C.P.,
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(DuBois).
They
disagreed with his message on temporary adjustments and submission.
They detested his stand on political accommodation (“The
Two”).
Washington’s
efforts were essential for opening doors that may have been closed
to a more militant approach. His Atlanta Compromise Speech reinforced
the need for educating African Americans to their fullest potential.
He stressed the importance of establishing good race relations
between the two races, at that moment, at that time, and in that
era (“Equal”).
Works Cited*
“Atlanta
Burned6.” Online image. The Civil War in Georgia, An Illustrated
Travelers Guide. November 2002. Sherpa Guides. 15 February 2005.
<http://www.sherpaguides.com/georgia/civil_war/atlanta/marietta_srea.html>.
Berkin,
Carol, et al. American Voices: A History of the United States
Volume II 1865 to Present. Glenview: Scott, 1992.
“Black
Audience18.” Online image. Documenting the American South.
1 February 2005. UNC University Library. 2 February 2005. <http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/scott/ill4.html>.
“Booker
T. Washington Delivers the 1895 Atlanta Compromise Speech.”
History Matters. 25 January 2005. <http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/39.html>.
“BT
Washington Speak1.” Online image. Booker T. Washington on
his last southern tour in Louisian. 1 February 2005. The National
Park Service. 2 February 2005. <http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/tuskegee/lgimage/btw24.htm>.
“Desk36.”
Online image. Washington’s Legacy. Booker T. Washington
National Monument. 2 February 2005. <http://www.nps.gov/bowa/legacy.htm>.
“DuBois
Picture31.” Online image. DuBois, William Edward Burghardt.
Library of Congress. 11 February 2005. <http://search.eb.com/blackhistory/micro/179/2.html>.
“NAACP32.”
Online image. The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow. PBS. 13 February
2005. <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_org_naacp.html>.
DuBois,
W.E.B., “W.E.B. DuBois Critiques Booker T. Washington.”
History Matters. 25 January 2005. <http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/86.html>.
“Equality37.”
Online image. The Booker T. Washington Papers. University of Illinois
Press. 5 February 2005. <http://www.historycooperative.org/btw/gallery/g28.html>.
“Expo
Committee14.” Online image. Baltimore Business and Industry.
Maryland Historical Society. 5 February 2005. <http://mdhsimage.mdhs.org/Library/Images/Mellon%20Images/Z24access/z24-00861.jpg>.
“Exposition
Poster4.” Online image. Library Resources for the Graduate
Institute of Liberal Arts. 14 July 2004. Emory University General
Libraries. 11 February 2005. <http://web.library.emory.edu/subjects/humanities/ila/ilaguide/net.html>.
“Ku
Klux Klan10. Online image. Levi’s Classroom. EduSolution.com.
5 February 2005. <http://edusolution.com/myclassroom/classnotes/reconstruction/kkk.htm>.
“Lynching
Three12.” Online image. Photograph of the Duluth lynching
victims. Minnesota Historical Society. 16 February 2005. <http://shop.mnhs.org/pages.cfm?ID=36&CFID=698024&CFTOKEN=13672417>.
“Leaving
the South19.” Online image. Runaway Slaves. Safe Passage.
13 February 2005. <http://www.safepassageohio.org/links/webquests.asp>.
“Left
Right33.” Online image. Learner. A Vital Progressivism.
2 February 2005. <http://www.learner.org/biographyofamerica/prog19/>.
“Little
Girl24.” Online image. Representing Education and Labor.
University of Virginia. 18 February 2005. <http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma02/amacker/photo/education.html>.
“Lynching
Two13.” Online image. African American Historical Timeline.
Gettysburg College. 16 February 2005. <http://www.gettysburg.edu/academics/english/eng235/lynch.html>.
Martin,
James K., et al. America and Its Peoples: A Mosaic in the
Making Volume II from 1865. Boston: Pearson, 2005.
“Negro
Poster7.” Online image. Documenting the American South.
1 February 2005. UNC University Library. 2 February 2005. <http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/scott/scott.html>.
“New
Orleans Speech21.” Online image. Booker T. Washington in
New Orleans. Smithsonian Magazine. 2 February 2005. <http://www.smithsonianmag.si.edu/smithsonian/issues00/jul00/images/bookert_jpg.html>.
“New
South8.” Online image. The Nineteenth-Century South. 8 February
2005. University of Virginia. 11 February 2005. <http://www.virginia.edu/history/courses/fall.97/hius323/levee1.jpg>.
“Newspaper
Article29.” Online image. Patience and Self-Control Needed
to Solve the Race Problem. American Newspaper Repository. 18 February
2005. <http://home.gwi.net/~dnb/read/booker/book_t_washington.htm>
“Overview
BT Washington2.” Online image. Unitarianism in America.
Harvard Square Library. 2 February 2005. <http://www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/UIA%20Online/35washington.html>.
“Piedmont
Park16.” Online image. The Historical Themes of Piedmont
Park. Georgia State University. 2 February 2005. <http://monarch.gsu.edu/piedmont/P2.htm>.
“Prelude
to Violence: African American Perspective.” Atlanta 1906:
A Race Riot. Bookmark Media. 2 February 2005. <http://www.bookmarkmedia.com/Atlanta1906/site/01/aa_perspective.html>.
“Race
Relations26.” Online image. Illinois During the Gilded Age.
Northern Illinois University Libraries. 5 February 2005. <http://dig.lib.niu.edu/gildedage/>.
“Reading35.”
Online image. The Progress of a People. African American Perspectives.
2 February 2005. <http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/aap/bookert.html>.
“Senate
1985 US15.” Online image. Oregon State Archives. 17 November
2003. Oregon Secretary of State. 5 February 2005. <http://www.archives.sos.state.or.us/legislative/legislative%20guide/legislative%20guide/contents.html>.
“Shaking
Hands30.” Online image. Documenting the American South.
1 February 2005. UNC University Library. 2 February 2005. <http://docsouth.unc.edu/washstory/washin.html>.
Sheets,
Millard Owen. The Negro's Contribution in the Social and Cultural
Development of America: Science23. 1939. United States Department
of the Interior. Online image. <http://www.doi.gov/museum/murals/>.
“Sitting
on Steps27.” Online image. The debate between W. E. B. DuBois
and Booker T. Washington. PBS: Frontline. 2 February 2005. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/race/etc/road.html>.
“Social
Prominence3.” Online image. R.C. Ogden, Senator Taft, Booker
T. Washington, and Andrew Carnegie. Library of Congress. 2 February
2005. <http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/tuskegee/lgimage/btw27.htm>.
“Speech17.”
Online image. Documenting the American South. 1 February 2005.
UNC University Library. 16 February 2005. <http://docsouth.unc.edu/washstory/illustr27.html>.
“Supporters28.”
Online image. History’s Greatest Biographies: Activists.
X3D Technologies Corp. 6 February 2005. <http://www.x3dworld.com/education/History/FC_History_Humanitarians.html>.
“Thinking34.”
Online image. Booker Taliaferro Washington on Education. North
by South. 2 February 2005. <http://northbysouth.kenyon.edu/1998/edu/home/btw.htm>.
“Triple
Speech20, 22.” Online image. Documenting the American South.
1 February 2005. UNC University Library. 2 February 2005. <http://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/scott/scott.html>.
“Tully11.”
Online image. Artnet. Artnet Worldwide Corporation. 6 February
2005. <http://www.artnet.com/magazine_pre2000/news/tully/tully10-15-97.asp>.
“Tuskegee
Class9.” Online image. Making Democracy Work for Everyone.
29 April 2002. Schools of California Online Resources for Education.
18 February 2005. <http://score.rims.k12.ca.us/activity/unbusiness/>.
“The
Two Nations of Black America,” The debate between W. E.
B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington. PBS: Frontline. 2 February
2005. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/race/etc/road.html>.
Washington,
Booker T., “Equal and Exact Justice to Both Races: Booker
T. Washington on the Reaction to his Atlanta Compromise Speech.”
History Matters. 1 January 2005. <http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/86.html>.
---.
“Making the Atlanta Compromise: Booker T. Washington Is
Invited to Speak.” History Matters. 1 January 2005. <http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/86.html>.
“William
T. Sherman5.” Online image. 15th U.S. Regiment of Infantry.
2 February 2005. <http://www.geocities.com/rodent70/html/15thatl.html
>.
“Women
Nurses25.” Online image. Representing Education and Labor.
University of Virginia. 18 February 2005. <http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma02/amacker/photo/education.html>.
*Please
note: Superscripts are included as part of the image name for
convenience in locating the image within the photo story.
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